In late December of 1888 twenty-five Mexicans arrived at the Johnson Mines [later Thurber] to replace some of the striking miners recently removed by Texas Rangers. (throughout the Gilded Age law enforcement sided with the oligarchs). The Fort Worth Daily Gazette reported that, “There is some excitement among the people of this vicinity, where the news has reached them, as Mexicans are not desired by the citizens of this part of Texas.”

1860: H.W. Carter gave his wife a wood-burning stove for Christmas. It was the first seen in Erath County and drew a large crowd. article in Stephenville Tribune, 1928

1879: Nancy William married a man named Goater in Stephenville this month. She was 11 years old.

Fort Worth Democrat

In December of 1864, a company of Erath County Confederate militia discovered a trail heading southwest through Palo Pinto County made by several hundred Indians. They opened a fresh grave by the trail which contained the body of a young woman and stripped her of clothing and ornaments for souvenirs. The alarm was spread and about 500 militia followed the trail. It was supposed that the Indians were Comanche (Texas immigrants thought all Indians were Comanches) but they were Kickapoos escaping the Civil War fighting in Kansas. They were going to Mexico and were camped on the Concho River, near San Angelo when the militia attacked on January 8. The Kickapoo were armed with long range rifled muskets and killed many of the Anglos, including all of those who plundered the grave. On the way back to Stephenville they ran into a severe Norther and had to eat some of their horses to survive the trip.

James Buckner Barry, A Texas Ranger and Frontiersman: The Days of Buck Barry in Texas, 1845-1906, James K. Greer (ed.) Dallas: The Southwestern Press, 1932; and George B. Erath, The Memoirs of Major George B. Erath, Bulletin 3, The Heritage Society of Waco, 1956.

In December of 1910, “Constable Charley Love brought Winsel Stefanko, a Thurber miner, to Stephenville to be tried for lunacy. The demented man believes he is a multimillionaire who was making arrangements to go to Washington to marry President Taft’s daughter.” Stephenville Empire

Lee Young described his first impression of Stephenville in 1878: “I arrived in Stephenville by hack from Meridian. Stephenville was then a hard looking little town, and had I enough money enough to go further west, I should have done so.” Stephenville Tribune

December 3, 1891: Ceremonies were held on the square for the laying of the cornerstone for the new courthouse. Later in the day, also on the square, a pit fight between a bear and a wolf drew a crowd of 700. Stephenville Empire

An early observer remarked that the Western Cross Timbers post oak forest was sometimes referred to as the Cast Iron forest that was impassable in places. But in other areas agricultural Indians like the Caddo, Anadarko, Ioni and the more recent Delaware,[they came as scouts] regularly burned the brush and smaller trees from the woods, reducing the accumulation of deadwood. Burning stimulated the growth of open meadows and blackberries and increased the deer and turkey populations. Early Stephenville was described as park-like, with post oaks growing far enough apart for little bluestem to grow among them. Two wagons abreast could travel through the oaks. And even though it was a new concept, Anglo immigrants continued the use of fire to maintain the forest and prairie.

Dan Young, Town and Country Bank, “A Calendar of Erath County Horticultural History, 1982.”

The native prairie grasses were so tall in the 1870s that when Lue Sherod (17) fell from her horse and broke her leg a few yards from the Alexander/Stephenville road she had to place her bonnet on a stick to be noticed by the passing stage. The passengers delayed a few moments while the possibility of an Indian decoy was discussed. Eventually an M.D. from San Antonio investigated and set the girl’s leg and convinced the stage driver to deliver her to her home near Alarm Creek.

Temple Nola Sageser-Hicks. Interview. Stephenville, 1981.

An article in the 1883 Stephenville Empire complains that eggs are getting scarce: “The blessed ladies are hoarding up for Christmas.” The Fort Worth Democrat advises that “The saving of wood ashes and their application to the soil is a part of the business of the farmer.”

1882: “Alexander is situated on Green Creek, a few hundred yards to the north, at the foot of the hills, and commands a lovely view of the creek valley, with its beautiful groves of pecan, elm, etc. Its fine water facilities and pleasant surroundings make it a desirable village to live in. The bountiful supply of good water, . . . is one of the greatest charms of this growing little village. The creek affords quantities of fish and a nice place for boat riding.” Stephenville Empire